


Before You Fall

by Headphone_Love



Series: For You, I'd Fall [2]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Concerned Keith (Voltron), Denial of Feelings, Eventual Romance, Feelings Realization, Hurt Lance (Voltron), Keith (Voltron) is Bad at Feelings, Lance (Voltron) Angst, Lance is Special, M/M, Minor Injuries, Pre-Relationship, Unlucky Lance McClain
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-31
Updated: 2019-03-31
Packaged: 2019-12-30 00:56:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,134
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18304907
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Headphone_Love/pseuds/Headphone_Love
Summary: Sometimes Lance hated knowing what happened next.This time, though, he was grateful.Keith...not so much.





	Before You Fall

**Author's Note:**

> One part of three, but can be read as a standalone.  
> I'd like to thank my discord wife for dealing with my klance ramblings so I could clear my head enough to write this :D 
> 
> ~HxL

Sometimes, Lance hated knowing what happened next.

The first time he realised his _gift_ , he was five and saved his sister from falling off the monkey bars and cracking her head open. He broke his arm in the process, but he didn’t cry, simply staring at the bone in awe. He hadn’t realized that by stopping her injury, he would get one instead. The adrenaline kept him scarily calm until they got to the hospital.

There, he sobbed his heart out more out of fear rather than pain.

The next time was when he was in elementary school and he almost saw a teacher fall down the stairs. He wasn’t sure how he knew that specific time—whether he actually saw it or had a feeling—but he ended up falling and hitting his head against the bottom of the staircase. When he woke, his teacher was by his side in a panic, asking why he had done what he had. He told her that her heel was broken, shocking her into checking while a few teachers crowded around him and called the nurse.  

“It must have...broken on the way to the nurse’s office earlier…”

Lance didn’t remember much else from that day, other than spending the night in the hospital and going home to a hysterical mother the next day. He had gotten an earful that was a mix of loving and scolding, but that was much better than the sight of his teacher in a mess of limbs and her own blood at the bottom of the staircase. A month after that, his teacher announced her pregnancy and that she was leaving at the end of the month. Lance noticed that her heels had been swapped for flats.

The baby was born early, but Lance had heard there hadn’t been any complications.

After a few more run-ins like that, Lance began to see himself as a hero of sorts. While still plagued by the disturbing sights he sometimes saw and heard, he had stopped all of them from happening and assumed he was meant to do so.

At least until the time he was talking to the boy from down the street while playing soccer with him. When the boy laughed and shoved him playfully, Lance nearly choked at the sight of him in a hospital bed. A part of him panicked, tears springing to his eyes as the boy apologised and pleaded that Lance didn’t tell his mother. After nearly a half hour of crying, Lance hugged the boy close and told him to be careful, confusing the boy thoroughly. The boy agreed he would, but only after making Lance promise not to be a tattletale.

At nine years old, Lance agreed and they continued to play like nothing had happened.

At ten years old, Lance found out the boy had died from an aggressive form of cancer.

At the same age, he realised he was no hero.

The thought of how he could have helped left Lance with a sickness in his gut that took years to go away. Even as an adult if he thought about it too often, he would feel the urge to go and hug his toilet like a person who had one too many drinks. Then again, that was how he felt whenever he knew about something that was meant to happen.

From his sister’s head split open, the sound of his teacher’s neck snapping on the way down those stairs, the beeping of the hospital room as his friend whimpered in pain...

...to the sight of his fellow bleeding out in front of him while he was forced to watch.

“Tell me how you knew, Lance,” Keith insisted, following the other down the hall. They were both fresh out of the pods, but Lance was still feeling the burn on his side where the scar of his actions would remain for probably the rest of his life.

“Not now, mullet,” Lance snapped, attempting to swallow the lump in his throat as he made his way to his room. Keith grabbed at his shoulder, but Lance smacked his hand away before running to his room, entering it and making his way to the bathroom.

As he kneeled over the toilet, Lance felt his back begin to ache from the position. He could feel his ribs begging for his body to stop the action, but it didn’t stop.

It didn’t stop even when all that came up was bile and spit: when all Lance was doing was dry heaving and crying into the bowl.

Sometimes, Lance really hated knowing what happened next.

But in this case, he couldn’t help but also thank the gods for this _gift_. It had helped him save his friends and that was something that Lance would never take for granted.

Letting out a sob of relief, Lance leaned back against the wall, staring at the ceiling. 

And he smiled. 

* * *

 

Keith didn’t let up, much like Lance expected.

He hovered, much like a mother with a sick child, but the difference was that Lance was not sick—well, at least not for the time being. He could still feel the bit of nausea that crept up every now and then, especially because he had begun to see or experience his gift more often than usual.

From Pidge nearly falling off her ladder and messing up her wrist, to Hunk burning himself on the pan….little things.

It was no longer limited to life ending situations and it confused Lance more than he would ever admit. He would be standing there, wondering what would happen, and then he would see it, and then within the span of half an hour, it would just...happen! It scared him more than when it would randomly happen, but he tried not to think too much into it.

Still, he had to pick his battles to avoid Keith’s suspicions, and so while he didn’t let Pidge fall, he did have to let Hunk burn his hand. It was a flesh wound, and Coran healed it up to the point of it leaving only a minor reminder on the other’s skin.

It was why he was rolling his shoulder in slight pain, the bruise not a big enough injury for the pod to fix, but it was better than Pidge messing up her wrist while in the middle of working on an improved cloaking device for the lions. A part of Lance wondered whether he would have something worse than a burn if he had helped Hunk, but he didn’t have long to consider it when Keith was in front of him again.

Mood already sour because of his shoulder, Lance shut his eyes and waved a hand dismissively. “You know, this is my sacred place. I don’t need you ruining the sanctity of the holodeck so if you cou—”

“You knew it would happen,” Keith said quietly, Lance pausing and looking up at the other with a frown.

“Knew what would happen?”

“Everything.”

Lance snorted, raising a brow at the other and waving a hand in the air. “You’ve been way into your conspiracy theories, mullet. I mean I know I’m smart, but no need to hide your compliments as—”

“Lance.”

The tone left little to no room for argument, and so Lance’s amusement faded relatively quick.

“What?” Lance replied, not sure what do tell Keith in this situation. No matter what he said, he would sound like a wack job.

And hell, maybe that was exactly what he was.

“Just...be honest with me for a second, alright?” Keith said, running a hand through his hair. Lance didn’t say a word, Keith taking a moment to compose his thoughts. “When you were about to pilot Blue back on Earth...did you know we would all end up here? As paladins?”

“No,” Lance said easily: because he hadn’t. If he had, maybe he wouldn’t have done it...though a part of him knew he sure as hell would have. A cargo pilot vs. being a paladin? Hell, if he had to go back he might pick paladin all over again.

Keith observed him for a moment, but nodded and moved on. “When the crystal exploded…?”

“Yes.”

“When that alien girl took Blue from you?”

“No.”

“When Sven was shot?”

Lance’s eyes lowered. “Surprisingly, no. But that was an alternate dimension,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. “I don’t think whatever this is could have predicted that even if I wanted it to.”

“Right. Last one,” Keith promised, and Lance shifted where he sat, shoulder long forgotten.

“When Allura was almost hit with that blast when I was with the Blades...did you know about that?”

Lance paused, the memory of Allura screaming in agony making the familiar feeling of needing to empty his stomach return. Lance sighed out a reluctant “Yeah…”.

Keith didn’t get angry as he expected, but his fists did clench at his sides which was practically the same thing. No nod this time, only a breath of disbelief and some minor words under his breath that Lance couldn’t catch.

“You knew you’d die,” Keith whispered.

With a deep breath, Lance shrugged his shoulders. “No. I didn’t.”

“Lance...”

“I can only see what happens if I _don’t_ do anything,” Lance cut off, eyes on his beaten up sneakers. “I can’t see what happens if I _do_...and if you saw what I did, you’d think anything was better than the original outcome.”

Lance expected for the other to blow up at him: to call him an idiot and selfish and every other name in the book. He expected to be called an idiot for risking the entire universe for an impulsive decision...

“Are they bad? The things you see?”

The question shocked him almost as much as Keith sitting beside him, his expression more conflicted than angry. Lance’s eyes went a bit wide.

“You believe me?”

“Yeah, shocking to me too,” Keith admitted, lifting his legs so he could rest his arms on his knees. “But you wouldn’t look so torn up about it if you were lying.”

Lance eyed him for a moment before he broke into a small snort, covering his mouth with one of his hands and shaking his head. “You look like you were hoping I was lying,” he said with a chuckle.

“If you were I could move on and not have to worry about it,” Keith said with a sigh. “But since it’s real, stunts like the last time are to be expected, aren’t they?”

Sobering up at the mention of the last time, Lance’s smile faltered. “Yeah,” he murmured, looking back at the holodeck. “I react. One moment I see it, the next moment I’m in it,” he explained, not sure if it was getting across. “Sometimes it isn’t even seeing, but this gut feeling that feels like it is going to rip through my stomach.”

“So did you see it happening or make a guess when it came to me?”

“I saw you bleeding out while I was back on the castle ship,” Lance said calmly, Keith’s eyes going wide. “But I didn’t see what led up to it.”

Keith’s brow furrowed. They sat together while Lance skimmed through the stars, trying to concentrate but far too aware of Keith’s presence to do so. Giving up, Lance moved his hands along the stars until a familiar planet came into view, his eyes glued to it until it was right in front of them both.

“So that’s why you decided to come along instead of staying with Coran and the others?” Keith began, breaking the silence between them. “As a sacrifice?”

The bite to his tone didn’t go unnoticed, but Lance kept his eyes on the stars. “I wasn’t purposely a sacrifice if that’s what you’re aiming at,” Lance answered, so quietly he was sure Keith nearly missed it. “I just wanted to make sure we both made it out alive. And we did.”

“You nearly—!”

“Being stabbed wasn’t in the cards, Keith,” Lance hissed, Keith quieting down as his eyes slipped down to where the scar was beneath his clothing. “But I _felt_ it. I knew that if I hadn’t done something you would have been shot right through the chest and there was no _way_ you could have—”

His voice broke off before he could finish, arm coming up instantly to wipe away the tears that had sprung loose. He had felt it coming, but he had assumed he would have a good few minutes left before he lost it. He made sure to keep his emotions somewhat controlled, not wanting to cry in front of Keith of all people. It was going well until he felt a hand on his shoulder, tensing as he heard the other sigh.

“I’m sorry.”

Lance didn’t raise his head, but more tears did begin to slip down his cheeks. He shook his head, a choked laugh leaving his lips at the ridiculousness of this situation. With a few more sniffs, Lance looked up to see Keith frowning deeply, a grin forming on his lips.

“Yeah? I’m not.”

* * *

 

“How often do you get them?”

Lance had his eyes closed, him and Keith in his room in order to avoid spilling the news to anyone else. It was exhausting telling Keith, but he guessed he should have seen that coming. He curled into himself, the blanket providing an odd sense of comfort after he had been sat on the floor for however long.

“It’s random, really. Mostly happens right before the event.”

“But with mine, you saw it way in advance...I hadn’t even left yet,” Keith pointed out. “How does that make sense?”

Lance looked towards Keith with a raised brow. “You act like any of this makes sense, mullet. All I remember is hoping the mission went alright, and then it happened and that’s when I went to tell Allura and the other’s I wanted in.”

Keith took in the information, not saying much as he rocked back and forth in his chair with his feet on the desk. Lance’s fingers twitched whenever he would lean too far back, memories of his siblings crashing to the floor and his mother yelling coming back. While funny after the fact, during was another story.

“You’re gonna fall if you—” Lance started, only for Keith to lean back too far. Lance sprung forward, grabbing for Keith’s wrist as said paladin’s arms waved in the air. Managing to grab a hold of his hand, Lance pulled him back so that the chair was back on the floor along with Keith’s feet. “—keep doing that,” he finished, a bit airy but audible. The tension in the room was so thick that it made Lance’s bathroom look cozy. When Keith’s eyes dropped to his hold on his wrist, Lance let him go, hand in the air awkwardly.

“Sorry, I’m...I didn’t mean to…”

“Did you know that was gonna happen?” Keith demanded, leaning in close.

Lance blinked. He felt the tension in the room break in an instant, tilting his head and playing along. “Yeah, actually,” he lied as Keith sucked in a breath.

“I also saw it happen when I was a kid and my mother told my brothers the same thing I told you, because common sense sometimes needs to be taught so people don’t crack their heads open,” Lance said dryly, backing off and moving to grab his blanket that had fallen to the floor. He shook it a few times to avoid dust clinging to it, tossing it on the bed and plopping down.

Keith didn’t seem to catch onto his sarcasm, muttering something under his breath about how weird the ability was.

“Keith, really? No, I didn’t see that happening,” Lance spelled out. “I’ve seen people do it before. I know what could happen and the timing was convenient.”

Waving a hand, Lance leaned forward so his elbows were on his knees. He placed his face in his hands.

“Are you alright?” Keith asked quietly, Lance shaking his head.

“Yeah, perfect.”

Ignoring the sarcasm, Keith stretched his hands above his head and stood. “Maybe you should get some sleep.”

Sounded nice in theory, but Lance knew that it was a fifty/fifty chance whenever his head hit the pillow. Either he’d be out like a light or awake worrying about everything and anything. Then again, he was sure all of them experienced that since they were in space and away from their loved ones.

“Yeah, maybe I should,” Lance agreed despite the odds, thinking some alone time would be good for him right now. A lot had happened in the span of what felt like weeks.

The feeling of something wrapping around him caught him off guard, Lance looking up to see Keith in front of him, the ends of the blanket in his gloved hands. Lifting a hand in confusion, Lance gripped the fabric that was once again around his shoulders. He was about to thank the other until one of Keith’s hands also pushed some hair from his face.

His hands were warm and Lance was half sure he shouldn’t have noticed that as much as he did.

“I’ll leave you to it, then.”

Unsure of why he felt so… _exposed_ , Lance cleared his throat. “Yeah, I’ll, uh, catch you later?”

Keith stood, letting the blanket slip from his hands. “Yeah. Later.”

Only when he was sure Keith wasn’t looking, Lance watched his back while he walked out. Having Keith knowing this was not necessarily bad, but it felt weird. Lance hadn't told a soul in his 18 years of living, and now, his old rival knew? The rival that had come back grizzled and apparently older than him now?

“One more thing.”

“Yes?!” Lance squeaked, feeling like he had been caught staring when in reality Keith probably hadn't noticed. 

“We’ll always need you as a paladin...so don’t get used to being a sacrifice...purposely or not.”

Lance felt the panic leave in an instant, wondering where the _hell_ that had come from.

“Yeah...I’ll...try?”

Deeming the answer good enough for now, Keith left the room with a push of air from his nose and a wave.

Lance waved in return, the hand remaining in the air even after Keith had left. A moment later, it pressed against his cheek, feeling how the heat radiated off of it.

“I’m just getting sick,” Lance whispered, squirming on his bed and shifting until he was lying on his side and wrapped from head to toe. The feeling of fingers in his hair made him grow even warmer in the face, stomach twisting in a way he wasn't too familiar with. 

"Yup. Just...just a fever.”

 

 


End file.
